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Children and Families

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RAND research on children covers the prenatal period up to age 18 and includes areas such as child health and the role of the family unit, neighborhoods, and community influence on child well-being. RAND's family-focused research covers additional topics such as marriage and divorce, senior care, and family finances.

Concerns about vaccine safety have led some parents to decline recommended vaccination of their children, leading to the resurgence of diseases. Harmful side effects are extremely rare and must be weighed against the protective benefits that vaccines provide.

Despite the central and growing role of digital technology for knowledge-based work, children in low-income families have relatively limited access to computer-based devices, software applications, and the Internet. “T” Is for Technology explored the potential for early childhood education to help narrow this digital divide.

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This report provides background on the Senate Bill (SB) 1041 reforms to the California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) program, as well as an overview of a multiyear, multicomponent evaluation of the SB 1041 policy changes.

The Department of Defense has teamed with RAND to conduct a study of the Military OneSource program. To do that, we need your help! We want to know about your experiences with the Military OneSource program, what kinds of services you have used, and what has worked for you and what has not.

In thinking about scaling programs and services for children, youth, and families, the research community should consider economic evidence as part of their research programs in order to inform funding decisions.

Single parents head 10.4 percent of households with children across Europe — 20.4 percent in the UK — and the socioeconomic gap between single- and two-parent households continues to grow. Accessible and flexible work policies are needed to improve employment conditions for single parents, especially mothers.

At least half of Syrian refugee children aren't in school. Those who are face risks to the quality of education they receive, a risk they share with host-country children. But by making long-term investments, the international community can help ensure education isn't another casualty of the war.

Military spouses face challenges related to military life that can make it difficult for them to maintain and develop careers. The My Career Advancement Account (MyCAA) scholarship is one program designed to help them, but only one in five eligible spouses reported using it.

For children to flourish and succeed, they must be able to problem solve, handle stress and develop resilience, and interact appropriately with peers and adults. A study of children in Shelby County, Tennessee identifies factors in the home, child care setting, and community that contribute to social and emotional development.

RAND researchers sought to identify how many U.S. military service members and their dependents are remote from behavioral health care and the effects of this distance on their access to and use of care.

Roughly 300,000 military service members and 1 million dependents are geographically distant from behavioral health care, and remoteness is associated with lower use of specialty behavioral health care. Telehealth and collaborative care are two promising solutions.

There are millions of military caregivers—wives, husbands, siblings, parents, and friends—caring for U.S. service members and veterans who are wounded, ill, or injured. These caregivers help their loved ones live better-quality lives, but their own needs may go unmet.

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Researcher Spotlight

Director, RAND Justice, Infrastructure, and Environment

Anita Chandra is a senior policy researcher and director of RAND Justice, Infrastructure, and Environment at the RAND Corporation. She is also on the faculty of the Pardee RAND Graduate School. Her background is in public health, child and adolescent development, and community-based…

Senior Behavioral Scientist

Lisa Jaycox is a senior behavioral scientist and clinical psychologist at the RAND Corporation; she is also a professor at the Pardee RAND Graduate School. She has combined clinical and research expertise in the areas of child and adolescent mental health problems, including depression and…

Children and Families

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